A cryoablation device having a pressure monitoring system includes an elongated catheter tube that has a central lumen and is formed with a closed distal end. The distal end of a refrigerant supply line is positioned in the central lumen and distanced from the catheter tube's distal end to establish an expansion chamber therebetween. A return line, which can be established between the supply line and the catheter tube or can include a return tube, is provided to exhaust expanded refrigerant from the chamber. First and second pressure sensors are respectively positioned in the supply line upstream from the expansion chamber and in the return line. Typically, both sensors are positioned to remain at extracorporeal locations throughout a cryoablation procedure. Measured pressures are used together with the supply and return line dimensions to analytically estimate the chamber pressure and allow the expansion of refrigerant in the chamber to be monitored.
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9. A system for monitoring pressure in an expansion chamber of a cryoablation catheter, said catheter having a supply line for delivering a refrigerant to said expansion chamber for expansion therein and a return line for exhausting expanded refrigerant therefrom, said system comprising:
a first pressure sensor for measuring a supply pressure, Ps, in said supply line at a pre-selected distance upstream from said expansion chamber;
a second pressure sensor for measuring a return pressure, Pr, in said return line at a pre-selected distance downstream from said expansion chamber; and
a control unit for using said measured pressures Ps and Pr to determine the pressure in said expansion chamber to monitor the expansion of said refrigerant therein.
13. A method for cryoablating tissue at a treatment site in the vasculature of a patient, said method comprising the steps of:
providing an elongated catheter tube having a central lumen and formed with a closed distal end;
positioning the distal end of a supply line in said central lumen of said catheter tube at a distance from said distal end thereof to establish an expansion chamber therebetween;
advancing said distal end of said catheter tube through the patient's vasculature to the treatment site;
introducing a refrigerant into said supply line for outflow from said distal end thereof and expansion in said expansion chamber;
measuring a supply pressure, Ps, at an extracorporeal location in said supply line upstream from said expansion chamber;
measuring a return pressure, Pr, at an extracorporeal location downstream from said expansion chamber; and
using said measured pressures Ps and Pr to determine a pressure in said expansion chamber to monitor the expansion of said refrigerant therein.
1. A cryoablation device having a pressure monitoring system, said device comprising:
a refrigerant supply unit;
an elongated catheter tube having a central lumen and formed with a closed distal end;
a supply line having a proximal end connected to said refrigerant supply unit and a distal end disposed in said central lumen of said catheter tube and distanced from the distal end thereof to establish an expansion chamber therebetween, said supply line for delivering a refrigerant from said refrigerant supply unit to said expansion chamber for expansion therein;
a return line in fluid communication with said expansion chamber for exhausting refrigerant from said expansion chamber;
a first pressure sensor for measuring a supply pressure, Ps, in said supply line at a pre-selected distance upstream from said expansion chamber;
a second pressure sensor for measuring a return pressure, Pr, in said return line at a pre-selected distance downstream from said expansion chamber; and
a control unit connected to said first pressure sensor and to said second pressure sensor for using said measured pressures Ps and Pr for determining a pressure in said expansion chamber to monitor the expansion of said refrigerant therein.
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a means for comparing the pressure in said expansion chamber with a reference pressure to create an error signal; and
a means for varying said supply pressure, Ps, to make the error signal a nullity.
8. A device as recited in
10. A system as recited in
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an electronic means for comparing the pressure in said expansion chamber with a reference pressure to create an error signal; and
a means for varying said supply pressure, Ps, to make the error signal a nullity.
12. A system as recited in
14. A method as recited in
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The present invention pertains generally to devices and methods for cryoablating internal tissue. More particularly, the present invention pertains to devices and methods for monitoring the pressure inside the expansion chamber of a cryoablation catheter. The present invention is particularly, but not exclusively, useful for monitoring pressures at the tip of a cryoablation catheter using pressure sensors that remain extracorporeally positioned during a cryoablation procedure.
The non-invasive cryoablation of tissue within the vasculature (e.g. the veins, arteries and chambers of the heart) of a patient can be used to effectively destroy or isolate diseased tissue. For example, atrial fibrillation, which is a somewhat common heart condition, can be treated by cryoablating a circumferential band of tissue surrounding the ostium where a pulmonary vein connects with the left atrium to prevent abnormal electrical signals from reaching the heart. To perform such a procedure, the tip of a cryoablation catheter is typically inserted into and advanced within the vasculature of a patient until the tip is located adjacent to the targeted tissue. Next, in a typical cryocatheter, a refrigerant is pumped into the catheter for expansion into an expansion chamber that is located at or near the catheter tip. The expansion of the refrigerant cools the catheter tip and target tissue.
One way to monitor and control the expansion of a refrigerant near the distal tip of a cryocatheter is to monitor the pressure within the expansion chamber. In particular, the measured pressure within the chamber provides an indication of the flow of refrigerant through the tip, which in turn, provides an indication of the instantaneous cooling power of the cryocatheter. In addition, for a cryoablation system in which the refrigerant undergoes a phase change during expansion (i.e. transitions from a liquid to a gaseous state), the measured chamber pressure provides an indication of the actual refrigerant boiling temperature. This boiling temperature provides a direct indication of the temperature of the cryoablation catheter tip. Moreover, the measured chamber pressure can be used continuously during an ablation procedure to vary the flow of refrigerant into the catheter to optimize both the tip temperature and the catheter's cooling power.
With the above in mind, there are several drawbacks associated with placing a pressure sensor directly in the expansion chamber of a cryocatheter. First, such a positioning scheme uses up critical space at the distal tip of the catheter. More specifically, placing the pressure sensor at the tip results in either a reduction in expansion chamber volume or an increase in catheter tip size. The former can cause a reduction in refrigerant flow which can effectively lower the cooling power of the cryocatheter. On the other hand, increasing the tip size reduces the likelihood that the catheter tip can successfully navigate through the vasculature and reach the treatment site. As is well known, the human vasculature is curved, branched and contains vessels having relatively small inner diameters. As a consequence, it is necessary to design a catheter having a relatively low profile to allow the distal end of the catheter to navigate through the complex vasculature.
In addition to space considerations, the expansion chamber presents a relatively harsh environment for a pressure sensor. Specifically, a sensor positioned in the expansion chamber must be operable over a wide range of temperatures, including cryogenic temperatures as low as minus 85 degrees C., or lower.
In light of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide systems and methods for measuring the pressure within an expansion chamber at the distal end of a cryocatheter which do not require a reduction in the size of the chamber or an increase in the size of the catheter tip. It is still another object of the present invention to provide a system for measuring an expansion chamber pressure with pressure sensors that remain positioned at extracorporeal locations during a cryocatheter procedure. Yet another object of the present invention is to provide systems and methods for monitoring the temperature and cooling power of a cryocatheter tip which are easy to use, relatively simple to implement, and comparatively cost effective.
The present invention is directed to a cryoablation device having a pressure monitoring system. For the present invention, the device includes an elongated catheter tube that has a central lumen and is formed with a closed distal end. The device further includes a refrigerant supply unit which is connected to the proximal end of a supply line. The other end of the supply line (i.e. the distal end) is positioned in the central lumen of the catheter tube and distanced from the catheter tube's distal end. With this cooperation of structure, an expansion chamber is established in the central lumen between the distal end of the supply tube and the closed distal end of the catheter tube.
In a typical embodiment, the supply line includes a supply tube and a capillary tube with the capillary tube attached to the distal end of the supply tube. With this combination, the refrigerant supply unit can be activated to introduce a regulated flow of refrigerant into the supply tube for subsequent flow through the capillary tube. From the capillary tube, the refrigerant expands into the expansion chamber absorbing heat as it expands.
For the present invention, the device also includes a return line to exhaust expanded refrigerant from the expansion chamber. In a first embodiment, the return line includes a return tube having a distal end that is disposed in the central lumen of the catheter tube. Typically, the distal end of the return tube is positioned to be coterminous with the distal end of the supply line (e.g. the distal end of the capillary tube). The other end of the return tube (i.e. the proximal end) typically remains at an extracorporeal location throughout a cryoablation procedure.
The monitoring system of the cryoablation device includes a first pressure sensor that is positioned in the supply line at a pre-selected distance upstream from the expansion chamber. Typically, the pre-selected distance is chosen to ensure that the first pressure sensor remains at an extracorporeal location throughout a cryoablation procedure. Functionally, the first pressure sensor measures a supply pressure, Ps, in the supply line. In addition, the device includes a second pressure sensor that is positioned in the return tube at a pre-selected distance downstream from the expansion chamber. Typically, the pre-selected distance is chosen to ensure that the second pressure sensor remains at an extracorporeal location throughout a cryoablation procedure. Functionally, the second pressure sensor measures a return pressure, Pr, in the return line.
Using the measured pressures Ps and Pr, the pressure in the expansion chamber can be determined to monitor the expansion of the refrigerant in the chamber. For example, Ps and Pr can be used to analytically estimate the chamber pressure because the supply line and return line are contiguous and have known dimensions. Alternatively, an empirical relationship between Ps, Pr, and the chamber pressure can be developed and used to estimate the chamber pressure once the pressures Ps and Pr have been measured.
In another embodiment of the cryoablation device, a return tube is not used. Instead, a return line is established between the supply line and catheter tube. For example, the return line can be established between the inner surface of the catheter tube and the outer surface of the supply line (e.g. the outer surfaces of the supply tube and capillary tube). For this embodiment, the second pressure sensor is typically positioned between the supply tube and catheter tube and at a pre-selected distance downstream from the expansion chamber to measure a return pressure, Pr, in the return line.
Some embodiments of the cryoablation device include a control unit having an electronic processor that is connected to the first and second pressure sensors. The processor can be programmed to calculate the expansion chamber pressure using either an analytical approach, an empirical approach or a combination thereof. Once the expansion chamber pressure has been calculated, the processor can compare the pressure in the expansion chamber with a reference pressure to create an error signal. In addition, the processor can be configured to control the regulated flow of refrigerant into the supply tube. Specifically, the processor can vary the flow of refrigerant into the supply tube until the error signal is a nullity and a pre-selected chamber pressure has been obtained.
In some implementations of the device, the monitoring system can be configured to detect refrigerant leaks by comparing the flow of refrigerant into the supply line with the flow of refrigerant exiting the device through the return line. If a leak is detected, the processor can limit or stop the flow of refrigerant into the supply line.
The novel features of this invention, as well as the invention itself, both as to its structure and its operation, will be best understood from the accompanying drawings, taken in conjunction with the accompanying description, in which similar reference characters refer to similar parts, and in which:
Referring to
With cross-reference now to
As further shown in
As best seen in
In one embodiment of the device 10, a fluid refrigerant is used that transitions from a liquid state to a gaseous state as it expands into the expansion chamber 38. A suitable refrigerant supply unit 40 for delivering a refrigerant in a liquid state to the distal end 36 of a capillary tube 30 for transition to a gaseous state in the expansion chamber 38 is disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/243,997, entitled “A Refrigeration Source for a Cryoablation Catheter” and filed on Sep. 12, 2002, which is assigned to the same assignee as the present invention. Co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 10/243,997 is incorporated by reference herein. Heat absorbed by the refrigerant during this phase transition (i.e. latent heat) cools the distal portion 24 of the catheter tube 16 and the operative surface 14. When the proper pressure is established in the expansion chamber 38, a refrigerant such as nitrous oxide can be expanded to cool the distal portion 24 of the catheter tube 16 and the operative surface 14 to a temperature of approximately −85 degrees Celsius.
The device 10 also includes a return line 44, which for the embodiment shown in
Continuing with
With cross-reference to
Once the expansion chamber pressure has been calculated, the processor can compare the pressure in the expansion chamber 38 with a reference pressure to create an error signal. For the device 10, the processor of the control unit 56 can be configured to control the regulated flow of refrigerant from the refrigerant supply unit 40 into the supply tube 28. Specifically, the processor is connected via wire 61 to a regulator or similar component in the refrigerant supply unit 40 to vary the flow of refrigerant into the supply tube 28 until the error signal is a nullity and a pre-selected chamber pressure has been obtained.
In some implementations of the device 10, the monitoring system can be configured to detect refrigerant leaks by comparing the flow of refrigerant into the supply line 26 with the flow of refrigerant out of the return line 44 using the measure pressures Ps and Pr. If a leak is detected, the processor in the control unit 56 can limit or stop the flow of refrigerant into the supply line 26.
While the particular pressure monitor for cryoablation catheter as herein shown and disclosed in detail is fully capable of obtaining the objects and providing the advantages herein before stated, it is to be understood that it is merely illustrative of the presently preferred embodiments of the invention and that no limitations are intended to the details of construction or design herein shown other than as described in the appended claims.
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